Field of the Disclosure
The present disclosure generally relates to telecommunication. More specifically, the disclosure relates to method and system for enabling and facilitating roaming of subscribers equipped with Long-Term Evolution (LTE) devices between a Visited Public Mobile Network (VPMN) and a Home Public Mobile Network (HPMN) under certain circumstances that are not supported by standards promulgated by the Third Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) or the Global Standard for Mobile Communications Association (GSMA).
Background
As telecommunication technology has progressed, numerous mobile communication standards have been developed. These standards are broadly categorized into second generation (2G), third generation (3G) and the fourth generation (4G) technologies. Examples of 2G/3G technologies include Global System for Mobile communications (GSM), General Packet Radio Service (GPRS), Enhanced Data rates for GSM Evolution (EDGE), Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS), and the like. The UMTS standard further evolved to Evolved Packet System under the Third Generation Partnership Project (3GPP). LTE commonly denominates the 3GPP Evolved Packet System (EPS) as well as its Evolved-Universal Terrestrial Radio Access. LTE technology offers a wireless broadband system with higher data rates, lower latency, and higher spectrum efficiency. The LTE technology also introduces an Evolved Core Network (EPC) which is based on new interfaces and protocols. The EPC is using Internet Protocol and Diameter as main supporting protocols, while the legacy core network rather used the SS7 or C7 signaling paradigm.
To keep up with the competition, more and more operators are adopting the newer LTE technology standard, which is reported to be the fastest adopted technology ever. These network operators provide voice and data services to their own subscribers and to subscribers from other networks. When the network operator provides service to a subscriber from a foreign country, it is referred to as “international roaming.” When the network operator provides service to a subscriber from another network in the same country, it is referred to as “domestic roaming.”
LTE roaming, however, remains underdeveloped. There are several issues that limit the potential capability of LTE roaming. The first one is the spectrum spread (44 3GPP defined frequency bands) but it tends to become less and less true as the chipset and device manufacturers are supporting more and more frequency bands in a LTE device. At the same time, LTE1800 is widely adopted by 43% of the commercial networks and already enables roaming in a large number of destinations. In a longer run, the Asia-Pacific Telecommunity 700 MHz (APT700) appears to be gaining momentum and may become the long-term worldwide LTE roaming frequency band.
Perhaps the greatest factors that prevent operators from entering into LTE roaming agreement are the lack of human and financial resources, the complexity required to implement LTE roaming agreements, and the lack of interest from large operators to small LTE operators. Over the last few years, the revenues to network operators have consistently declined due to increased competition and the resulting pricing pressures. On the other hand, LTE subscribers are high average revenue per user (ARPU) roamers that could provide an increase of revenues to both the home and visited operators if LTE roaming is enabled. Hence, providing LTE subscribers access to the LTE radio network has become an important priority for the network operators worldwide.
Some visited operators have an LTE access network and 2G/3G roaming agreements but no LTE roaming agreement. These visited operators would like to allow subscribers equipped with a LTE device and associated with another operator (with which the subscribers have a 2G/3G roaming agreement) to roam on the visited operator LTE network. Likewise, some home operators that have no LTE access network would like to allow their subscribers equipped with a LTE device to roam onto the LTE access network of operators with whom the home operators have an LTE roaming agreement. Additionally, some roaming hub operators have LTE roaming agreements with visited operators and 2G/3G roaming agreements with a home operator. These roaming hub operators may also seek to provide the above-mentioned use-cases as a service to the home and visited operators.
In all of these scenarios, the HPMN may wish to avoid upgrading its internal infrastructure to comply with the standard implementation (i.e., upgrade its HLRs for supporting LTE security parameters (KASME) and the Gr+ (Gr Plus) interface. Hence, there is a need in the art to have a system and method for facilitating roaming of subscribers equipped with LTE devices onto LTE-capable VPLMNs under circumstances that are not supported by the 3GPP standard or the GSMA.